Laundry-press



(No Model.)

A. OTTE.

LAUNDRY PRESS. No. 408,552. Patented July 30, 1889.

vwawkoi UNITED STATES PATENT GEEICE.

ADRIAN OTTE, OF GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN.

LAUNDRY-PRESS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 408,132, dated July 30, 1889.

Application filed May 21, 1888- Serial No. 274,591. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, ADRIAN OTTE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Grand Rapids, in the county of Kent and State of M iehigan, have invented certain new and useful 1m provements in Laun d ry-Presses; an d I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to improvements in laundry-presses in which the dampened clothing is placed between two boards and subj ected to pressure by means of a screw, weights, or other device.

The objects of myinvention are to provide means for removing the lower board from be- 11 eath the upper one, so that larger boards may be used without having the upper one interfere with placing the clothing upon the lower one; also, to obviate the necessity of raising the upper board any greater distance than necessary to release'the clothing from pressure; also, to provide a quick upward movement for the upper board in conjunction with means for securing heavy pressure at the proper point. I accomplish these results by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figurel is a front elevation of a device embodying my invention,and Fig. 2 a vertical section of the same on the line so no of Fig. 1.

A is a suitable frame having attached at each side vertical posts l3,which are connected at their upper ends by a beam 0, through which passes a vertically-movable post I), having attached at its lower end the upper board E, by means of a screw 0, which enters a suitable opening in said post and engages with a suitable nut N, attached to the lower end of said post.

P is a hand-wheel for operating said screw.

L is a shaft journaled in suitable bearings attached near the upper ends of the posts B, upon which shaft is a pinion H, which engages with a rack G upon the post D to vertically move said post. Upon this shaft is also the ratchet-wheel I, with which engages the pawl J, to hold the post down when lowered; also, the hand-wheel K, for rotating said shaft.

.til the hook T strikes the frame.

M is a spring-catch which engages with the upper side of the beam 0 to sustain the post I) and parts attached when elevated.

The lower board F slides from beneath the upper board E, and is supported at its for- .ward end by the leg Q, which is provided with a roll B at the bottom, which moves over the floor as the board slides. Secured at each side of the frame and beneath thesliding board F is a strip S,- with which engages a hook T, attached to the under side of said board, which hook serves to hold the rear end of the board down, and also as a stop to regulate the move ment of said board by striking against the frame A. Said boards are both faced on their adjacent surfaces with metal, rubber, or other non-absorbent material to prevent Water from escaping from the clothing and penetrating the boards.

The operation of my device is as follows: The lower board F is first drawn forward un- This removes said board from beneath the upper board E. By thus removing the lower board much larger boards may be used with convenience when separated a given vertical distance. After the dampened clothing is placed upon the lower board it is pushed back until the hook T strikes the rear of the frame. The upper board is now lowered upon the top of the clothing by releasing the catch M and turning the shaft L, and a moderate pressure brought to bear upon the upper board by means of the handwheel K, the shaft being locked by the pawl J. If, now, greater press- .ure is desired, it can be secured by turning the screw 0 by means of the hand-wheel P. After the moisture has evenly penetrated the clothing it can be removed by reversing the described operations.

I am aware that'a press having a movable post provided with a rack and operated by a shaft provided with a pinion, a wheel, a ratchet, and a pawl, and also operated by a screw detachably secured to said post, is not new; also, that a vertically-movable post having a screw at its end abutting against a board to press upon the same is not new. I do not claim these, broadly.

hat I claim and wish to secure is as follows:

1. In a 1aundry-press,thc combination of a frame A with a horizontally-movable board F, having the leg Q, provided with a roll R, and the vertically-movable board E, provided with means for raising, lowering, and pressing upon the same, substantially as described.

2. In a laundry-press, the combination of a frame A, provided with strips S,with a horizontally-movable board F, having hooks T, engaging' with said strips, and avertically-movable board E, provided with means for raisin g, lowering, and pressing upon the same, substantially as described.

3. In a laundry-press, the combination of a frame A, having strips S, with aboard F, having hooks T and leg Q, and a vertically-movable board provided with means for raising, lowering, and pressing upon the same, substantially as described.

4. In a laundry-press, the combination of a frame A with a horizontally-movable board or top F, the posts B, shaft L, having a handwheel K, ratchet I, pawl J, and pinion H, the post D, having the rack G and latch M, and the board E, attached by the screw 0, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

ADRIAN OTTE.

Vitnesses:

JOHN ()TTE, LUTHER V. MOULTON. 

